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Edible elderberries

AHRAHR Posts: 361
in Fruit & veg
good morning 

might be a bit of a silly question but are all varieties of elderberries edible ? I have a elder in my garden which was already there before we moved in and I don’t know what kind it is. I have tried googling this but all I can find is to make sure the berries are fully ripe and that they are cooked first.    
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  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    If it’s an elderberry it’s edible ... so if you’re sure it’s an elderberry bush go ahead. If you’re not sure show us a pic 😊 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • AHRAHR Posts: 361
    Brilliant. I will post a picture later today just to make sure. 

    Thanks 
  • strelitzia32strelitzia32 Posts: 758
    Elderberries are not edible at all, unless you cook them thoroughly first! Even a small amount of raw berries will make you sick. I found that out the hard way, because they look identical to blackcurrant when sitting in a bowl!  :s
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    edited July 2020
    Oh dear @strelitzia32 ... poor you. It’s the tannic acid. 
    Thankfully the OP knew they need cooking otherwise I would’ve mentioned it. 
    Always best to follow a recipe when dealing with foraged fruits etc until you know what you’re doing. 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • josusa47josusa47 Posts: 3,530
    When I was in school, there were elder bushes growing beside the netball courts.  Some of us liked to eat the berries straight off the bush, and I never knew anyone be ill.  Perhaps we never ate enough.  I have an elder bush in my garden now, and sometimes add a cupful of berries to an apple crumble - lovely flavour.  I think it's a much underrated plant.
  • ButtercupdaysButtercupdays Posts: 4,546
    I've used them to make syrup and balsamic vinegar, my mum used to make them into wine!
  • AHRAHR Posts: 361
    Buttercupdays - I didn’t realise you could make a syrup? Making a wine sounds good although I don’t think I’d have enough. I plan to freeze them and add em to my rhubarb crumble next year. They sound quite dangerous uncooked. 

    Dove Just to make sure it’s and elder I’ve attached a couple of pictures. 
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    edited July 2020
    That’s elder ... Sambucus nigra 👍 

    Hope you don’t mind me saying I do a lot of cooking and I wouldn’t use elderberries with rhubarb ... they’re both very acidic. 

    Elderberries work best in the traditional recipes other people have mentioned ... wines, cordials and flavoured vinegars and the rediscovered and newly trendy ‘shrub cocktails’. 

    I like to use the flowers with gooseberries in jam or to make elderflower cordial as well as the traditional ‘champagne’

    Lits of info here 
    https://www.twineagles.org/elderberry-recipes.html#:~:text=Ingredients%3A%201%202%20cups%20elderberries%202%201%2F2%20-,4%201%2F4%20cup%20water%205%20Sparkling%20carbonated%20water

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • ButtercupdaysButtercupdays Posts: 4,546
    edited July 2020
    Yes, that's elder.!
    I've got quite a few trees on the edge of our sheep field but the birds get most of them,  as I can only reach the lower ones.
     I got the recipes off t'internet - the balsamic vinegar is nice, but I'm not quite sure how to use the syrup as I'm not one for sweet drinks. Might be nice with icecream...
    When we were kids my brother and I got dosed with elderberry wine if we got a cold. Definitely made you feel better. Luckily we were both pretty healthy or we might have grown up alcoholics from a young age!
  • AHRAHR Posts: 361
    Dovefromabove said:
    That’s elder ... Sambucus nigra 👍 

    Hope you don’t mind me saying I do a lot of cooking and I wouldn’t use elderberries with rhubarb ... they’re both very acidic. 

    Elderberries work best in the traditional recipes other people have mentioned ... wines, cordials and flavoured vinegars and the rediscovered and newly trendy ‘shrub cocktails’. 

    I like to use the flowers with gooseberries in jam or to make elderflower cordial as well as the traditional ‘champagne’

    Lits of info here 
    https://www.twineagles.org/elderberry-recipes.html#:~:text=Ingredients%3A%201%202%20cups%20elderberries%202%201%2F2%20-,4%201%2F4%20cup%20water%205%20Sparkling%20carbonated%20water
    Brilliant thanks. Happy to receive any information. To be honest Dove I don’t think I have ever eaten elderberries before. I can’t imagine I will get much from this tree. I will take a look at the link you sent. Thanks 👍
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